Obama: Consciousness

Hope made real

Who would have ever thought that a liberal lefty cynic like me would ever stand in solidarity and applause of our nation's leader?  I certainly didn't think so but here I am today, elated after President Obama's State of the Nation Address, rooting for the country and truly feeling that over-used cliched word: hope.  Hope is out there.  Change exists!  This is exactly what lead Obama to win the presidency and exactly that which will lead our nation out of crisis.

There is no plan for hope and change, despite the naysayers and critics request for one, and I feel Obama made that very clear last night.  The only plan for hope and change is that we as Americans begin taking responsibility for ourselves.  

Nothing made me more proud of our President last night when he declared that dropping out of High School is "no longer an option" for American people.  My applause became louder when he declared that this issue is neither democratic nor republican but an American issue! Education is the root of life opportunity and progressive change and our country should not carry a nonchalant attitude regarding it.  We must become better parents, better educators, better eaters, better citizens and we should carry a consideration for our common man.  The responsibility to shape this nation is ours and Obama spread that consciousness last night.  He can only take us so far.  After that the repair of this nation is only up to us.  I applaud President Obama and congratulate him for talking to his citizens like actual people and not running us through bullet points, numbers and dry statistics.  Morale and personal motivation are the key ingredients for any sense of healthy esteem and those are the same ingredients which will be applied in rebuilding this nation.  I salute President Obama for spreading this message and I will work with him and my fellow citizens to ensure this nation reaches the high-set goals so absolutely attainable. 

• "But while our economy may be weakened and our confidence shaken, though we are living through difficult and uncertain times, tonight I want every American to know this: We will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than before."
  
• "Those qualities that have made America the greatest force of progress and prosperity in human history we still possess in ample measure. What is required now is for this country to pull together, confront boldly the challenges we face, and take responsibility for our future once more."
• "I've appointed a proven and aggressive inspector general to ferret out any and all cases of waste and fraud.And we have created a new Web site called recovery.gov so that every American can find out how and where their money is being spent."
• "But credit has stopped flowing the way it should. Too many bad loans from the housing crisis have made their way onto the books of too many banks. And with so much debt and so little confidence, these banks are now fearful of lending out any more money to households, to businesses, or even to each other."
• "Well, I do not accept a future where the jobs and industries of tomorrow take root beyond our borders, and I know you don't, either. It is time for America to lead again."
• "So let there be no doubt: Health care reform cannot wait, it must not wait, and it will not wait another year."
• "It is...It is our responsibility as lawmakers and as educators to make this system work, but it is the responsibility of every citizen to participate in it.  So tonight I ask every American to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training. This can be a community college or a four-year school, vocational training or an apprenticeship. But whatever the training may be, every American will need to get more than a high school diploma. And dropping out of high school is no longer an option. It's not just quitting on yourself; it's quitting on your country. And this country needs and values the talents of every American."

Every So Often

The day is here:

The anxiety crashed a long time ago. The white foam rumbled itself out over the last few remaining months and the pools have drained back into the water.

He's made it. He put his hand on the book, the other up in the air and officially became our 44th President.

I suppose it is among the greatest of stories: The no-name underdog battling his way through the spiked tunnels and pitfalls of politics, dodging spears, swinging on hope, and defeating his two opponents at a pivotal time in our world's history. The stakes have never been higher and the people have turned to the rookie to lead them. We have given him a key to our city and he, with our investment, made that key glow to its brightest potential.

He is the Native American. The Slave. The man in the hose's aim. He is the man on the Moon, the picture in the text book. He is the man that made the Earth stand still. He is the President who got out of his motorcade to stop and wave to the people. He is history. He is: The American dream.

Throughout his campaign Barack Obama used words like Change, Hope and Progress to spark people up from an election and out into a movement. Art became inspired. Musicians began collaborating. Young people threw themselves onto computer screens and chiseled their way through technology. We had something to believe in again. After eight dark, directionless years we now had a light to hold on to.

"We want change. We want change."
"Yes we can! Yes we can!"

But now the day is here. Right here. Right now.

He has taken us this far. But now the responsibility is ours. We were the ones that chanted "yes we can." We were the ones that urged support. We were the ones that pledged "we want change." Now it's time to prove it.

So, in the words of our new President:

"Every so often there are times when America must rise to meet a moment.
And our moment is now.
This is our moment.
This is our time-
to unite in common purpose.
To make this century the next American century.
Let's go change the world!"

Let's go.

January 20th 2009: President Barack Obama

Shut Him Down: Rick Warren

BIGOT!

I know this is easy for me to promote since I'm out of town, but much like my Larry Craig protest, I'd be up in Times Square as soon as possible protesting this fucking bigot and Obama allowing him to speak.

Put something together New York, now! Scream your heads off.

Fuck, I wish I were there!

Moments After Barack Obama was Announced President

I was around the corner from Union Square when Barack Obama landed California and sealed his win as President of the United States of America. The streets erupted in howls and cheers and I ran to Union Square to capture the excitement.

This was the first time since I was a child that I actually wanted to wave the American Flag.

I've been trying to upload this footage all day but youtube, vimeo and other video sites have been clogged with new content:

Yes.We.CAN

Ladies and Gentleman: President Barack Obama

November 4th, 2008: 12:30PM

Red Faced. Teary Eyed. Inspired. Hopeful. Enthusiastic. Mushy Emotional Wreck!

November 4th, 2008

H O P E!

I Just Voted

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG

HOPE!

A Week Away

We are a week away from the election. I have told myself a million times, "I don't know what the fuck I'm going to do if McCain wins!?" I'm nervous and anxious and just last night I had two stressful dreams relating to the election.

If McCain and Palin take lead of this nation, if the worse case scenario becomes a reality, what am I and the millions like me going to do with all this built up hope? In my case, I suppose I'll just shrug, dig my hands into my pockets and berate myself for giving America the benefit of doubt. "How could I have been so foolish," I'll ask myself. "How could I have let myself become so dizzied by the idea of hope and change and progress in a nation so stuck on racism, ignorance and the almighty dollar?"

But then I'll remind myself that I am fortunate enough to exist in the year 2008 where millions of people and millions of voices screamed and pleaded for change. The year millions of people declared bullshit on modern politics and millions desperately yearned for progress. It would be the year where millions gathered and strived to make history. It would be the year that regardless of outcome, things changed.

We have all seen the video below. But as the assassination plots unravel and people cry out, "I would never vote for a black man" and as the days dwindle down I beg of you to take one more look at it. Look at it to remain inspired, to feel like you're not alone, to cry, to feel that we could all "just get along," to keep our voices heard, loud and clear, and to make sure that we never lose sight of the three words from which all history is made: Yes we can.

Debates

A series of haikus:

Two men sit on stage.
In front of the world one seems
fresh, the other, old.

What have we come to
When our crumbling world rests
On Joe the Plumber?

The man who makes oil
A green opportunity
Sees a bright future.

Eye rolls and short fuse
Only makes you look one way:
Grumpy, grumpy, old.

Impatient and Curt
Are two mouths no longer fed
At Gaia's table.

Best line of the night:
"Parents turn off the TV."
Drink knowledge juice box.

Grandma Sarah is Voting Obama!

Obamarama Granny!

My Jewish 94 year old Del Ray Beach, Florida Grandma is voting Obama! Fulfilling my Great Schlep responsibilities I called my mother this past weekend to check in on Grandma's voting status. My mother said, "Oh- she's voting Obama. Once Sarah Palin was announced Grandma knew voting for McCain wasn't an option."

Rage Grandma!

Big thanks to Mommy and Daddy Leven, Sisters Rachel and Meredith and cousin Randee Riot for rocking the Jew-Blue.

It looks like this Great Schlep thing really seems to have taken off:

"Schlep." A Yiddish word meaning to pull, yank or tug, schlep is a good way of describing what it took for Mike Bender to persuade his grandparents to vote for Sen. Barack Obama for president.

Bender's grandparents, Kenny and Selma Furst, 90 and 87 years old, should have been an easy sell to support the Democratic nominee for president.

Like many of the estimated 650,000 Jews living in Florida, the Fursts are lifelong, passionate Democrats and a crucial vote for any Democratic candidate hoping to win the battleground state.

But when Bender -- who is not affiliated with Obama's campaign but supports him -- brought up the idea of voting for Obama over Thanksgiving dinner last year, he was met with an uncharacteristic silence.

"Their reaction was, as they said, 'I'm a little meschugah,' " Bender said, adding that the expression meant "crazy."

For Selma Furst, voting for an African-American for president seemed unthinkable.

"I grew up with Jewish people and Italian people, but I never lived in a neighborhood that was black," she said. "Somebody said to me, 'What do you object to about him?' I said, well, truthfully, our colors are different."

Overcoming the prejudices of his grandparents' generation would be difficult, Bender realized. But he was not going to be alone.

[...]

The Silverman video quickly became a Web sensation, garnering about 2 million hits in the two weeks since it was posted on thegreatschlep.com, organizers said. Thousands of people pledged to call their relatives in Florida and more than 100 people volunteered to pay their own way to travel to the Sunshine State to campaign for Obama among Jewish voters, Wallach said.

Bender saw the Silverman video on YouTube in Los Angeles, California, where he works as a writer. Despite the humor of Silverman's call to schlep, the video's message resonated with Bender because of the difficulty he faced convincing his own grandparents.

"I thought it was brilliant," Bender said.

He decided to go to Florida and try one more time.

When Bender recently returned to his grandparents' retirement community in Tamarac, Florida, near Fort Lauderdale, he was greeted with several surprises. Months of telephone conversations and his trip had paid off: His grandparents told him shortly after he arrived that they were going to support Obama.

The next surprise was that his schlep had generated interest around their retirement community. A lot of interest. So many other seniors wanted to hear about Obama that the venue for a meeting on the subject had to be changed from the Furst's living room to a ballroom in the community's clubhouse.

An hour before Bender started to make his case about Obama on Sunday, groups of senior citizens were staking out space in the ballroom. Soon there were more than 100 people and no more chairs.

Sporting an Obama T-shirt with Hebrew writing on it, retiree Morty Brill said, "The economy, the war, you think you can trust Republicans to fix them?"

If there were any people in the room with reservations about Barack Obama, they kept those doubts to themselves.

As Bender told the crowd that Obama was not a Muslim and that Obama was a staunch supporter of Israel, he was met with heads nodding in agreement throughout the room.

However, Bender felt the need to drive the point further. If Obama was elected, he said, then Bender would not worry so much about politics and "would have more time to find a nice Jewish girl to marry."

Whether Mike Bender's schlep really changed any minds is anyone's guess, but the applause from the crowd was deafening.

Artifact

Artifact: 6/11/08